CHAPTER 6

Beth hurried to Bishop the second recess was announced, her heart pounding still from what had happened. She watched the boy being led away, her heart splitting in her chest at what she’d heard. How had they made him mute? Removed his tongue? God how horrible. And how old was he?

Bishop wrapped his arms around her and pressed his mouth to her ear. “We beat him when he couldn’t confess.”

The burning words and the pain in them stabbed her. “I know,” she gasped, stroking his head. He pulled back and led her across the room to a door. He opened it and looked inside then pulled her in and shut it. Beth watched him pace in the room with his hands on his shaking head. “I feel so fucking evil right now,” he muttered. “So fucking stupid.”

“I know,” she whispered, knowing there was nothing else to say. “I wish we all had the gifts Maggie and Seer has.”

“Thank God she was here,” he said, stopping to look at her. “No telling what would’ve happened.”

“The Fate Roll seemed to work,” she said, still amazed by it.

“I was ready to judge that kid in the worst possible way. I had all the sins of the coven resting on his innocent head!” he nearly yelled.

She could only nod, understanding as he went back to pacing.

“I am going to hunt them monsters, I swear to God, I will hunt all of them and I will bring them to justice. Because what they did to him, is only a small fraction of what they’ve done to many others and will continue to do,” he seethed, pointing at the wall while burning her with his gaze.

Again, she nodded. “I know you will. All of you will bring the justice he deserves and the rest like him.”

He hurried to her and hugged her. “They were going to take Luseah that night. They were coming for you, Beth. They won’t stop till they get what they want.”

“They will stop,” she assured. “Because you’ll get to them first.”

He pulled back and held her face, kissing her. “God, I missed kissing you. Feels like it’s been a week.”

The wall was suddenly at her back, and she was gasping right in his hungry mouth all over hers. He broke away and looked at the door. The second he locked it, her legs began to tremble. He turned and eyed her skirts as he undid his belt, sending her in a hurry to make way for him. She got out of her panties and skirt in three seconds as he lifted her right leg and slid his cock along her with a “Shhhh.”

Her womb jerked at remembering their airplane bathroom event. His cock shoved in with the press of his hand over her shocked cry followed by his grunts in her face as he bucked his hips. He made his cock pound her core in rapid fire as voices mumbled right outside the room. She fought to be quiet, locking her eyes on his, now boring into her.

“You want me to come in your cunt?” he barely whispered, hammering faster.

She managed a nod as she stifled her high pitch moans.

“I’m fucking coming so hard in your pretty cunt.” His hand left her mouth and bit in her hair as he kissed her, his own groans blasting in stifled strains.

She somehow made it through without screaming about it to everybody at the little swamp court-tree-house. Now they’d go back in the courtroom for the next event with the Fate Dice. Poor Bishop. She couldn’t believe they were stuck having to do it. But she had to believe it would work out. If not for her, for him. She would break that cycle in his life. She already had. She’d not stop until he believed without a doubt that he deserved good things too.

****

Beth watched Bishop whispering to Samuel a few feet away from where she sat, waiting for the Auditors to return. They had five minutes left. She was hoping Bishop would come so she could ask how this was supposed to go. Would she be required to do anything? Say anything? Knowing beforehand would be helpful and avoid her making a fool of herself and him.

She glanced at the kitchen next to the main room. All the Auditors were in there with masks raised and perched on top their heads, going on like it was a party instead of a legal proceeding. Was like they mixed family with everything there. She loved that about them but wasn’t so sure about it at the courthouse where people were going to be prosecuted for crimes.

She looked around, spotting Maggie and Spook laughing just outside the room on the tree-house’s wrap around porch. Thank God for him. She wondered what he’d done to put her in such a good mood. Maybe what Bishop had done. She looked around for Tully and Lesion, not seeing them. And where was Cherie?

Bishop made his way to her and sat, kissing her on the cheek.

“Can you tell me how this will go? Will I be required to do anything?”

He looked around before leaning to whisper, “Honestly, this is the first time I’ve attended anything like it.”

“I thought you had a Fate Dice roll?”

“Yes, but not in such a matter as this. Usually there’s only one party, not two. And the one party can request three things.”

“Three? What will you request?”

He regarded her. “Do away with the right-hand rule is one.”

She widened her eyes. “Mah-Mah won’t like that.”

“She’ll get her own three requests.”

Beth looked all around them. “Where is she?”

“Maybe stranded in the swamp.”

She shoved his arm at hearing he hoped as much. “You think she’s not coming?”

“That’s highly unlikely.”

“All of this right-hand stuff has caused enough commotion to fill an ocean. Whichever way this turns out, I can still be your right hand when you’re home.”

“No, Ma-Petite, I will be your right hand when I’m home.”

She smiled at the way he kept leaning in to kiss her cheek. She warned sweetly, “I may fight you on that one.” She whispered quietly, “Do they have any marriage dice for settling disputes?” The slow raise of his brow made her grin in mischief.

“What sort of disputes would these marriage dice solve, Ma-Petite?”

She sucked in a slow breath, excitement skittering through her. “I see where you’re going.”

“Do you? Maybe we should create some Karma Sutra Dice.”

“Oh my God, can you imagine?” she giggled.

“Yes, I can. Explicitly.”

“They’re coming,” she whispered, nodding at the Auditors.

The Grand Oratrice lady banged the gavel and brought order to the room as everybody found their seat.

“Will the parties for The Gauntlet Trials dispute come forward.”

Bishop took her hand and they both walked to the large half-round table. “Mah-Mah doesn’t seem to be here,” he announced.

They mumbled again in French, making Beth wish she knew more than just a few words. The owl mask faced them again. “Can you call her, sha?”

“Yes ma’am.”

Beth watched out of the corner of her eye as Bishop pulled his phone out and texted her. The room was terribly quiet as he waited for a response before muttering “Mon Dieu,” and hitting the phone sign then putting it to his ear.

Bishop suddenly turned his back to the Auditors and whispered into the phone. More French. His incredulous tone and the Mon Dieus had her curiosity burning. He let out a soft “Ahhhh…” then jumped into more of his sexy Cajun tongue, his sarcasm clearly heard in the up and down tempo. Then he hung up and faced the Auditors. “Claudette seems to have… forgotten about our meeting and says to go on without her. She trusts me.”

Oh boy. His bridled fury at that final bit had her strangling her own fingers clasped before her. Maybe they’d just throw it out. Call it all off.

“Meh, that leaves just you and the little wife. What are your three requests regarding the Gauntlet Trials, Little Bishop?”

Little Bishop. Beth realized they’d probably changed his diapers at one time. “Well…I would like to do away with the right-hand rules in matters of war,” Bishop said.

Brief French mutterings rose between the Auditors before the middle woman turned back to them. “You and your wife will share the roll of the Fate Dice. You will roll one and she will roll the other. If you both roll yes, the answer is yes. If you both roll no, the answer is no. If you both roll opposing answers, the two of you will roll the Judgment Dice to determine who’s Fate roll wins. Come sah?”

Bishop leaned toward Beth and whispered. “Did you understand?”

Beth nodded and answered quietly, “I think so.”

“Come sah,” Bishop answered.

Samuel presented Bishop the Fate Dice and Bishop handed Beth one.

“Right here, Little Bishop,” the Grand Oratrice instructed, pointing to their table.

They both walked over and stood before her.

“Ladies first,” the woman said, sounding like she smiled behind the mask.

Beth let her dice fall on the table and leaned, her heart dropping. It was NO. Crap. “I’m sorry,” she whispered as Bishop rolled. “You got YES,” she said, happy.

“Bring the Judgement Dice, Seer,” Grand Oratrice said.

Again, it was two dice. Beth got one and Bishop the other. She looked at it in her hand, realizing they looked like normal dice. What if they both rolled the same number? “Ladies first again?” Beth asked.

“Meh yeah, sha,” the woman said kindly, sounding like she was having a fun time.

Beth became aware of the awkwardness in the air as she let the dice fall. Three. “Darn it,” she muttered, feeling like she needed to show they were on opposing sides. Otherwise, what were they even doing there? Something about Bishops countenance and body movements said he felt the exact same. She kept her prayers to herself that he’d win this. He needed to more than she did.

He tossed his die on the table and her heart sank. A two. Dear Lord, he had sucky luck like her.

“The roll is in Belle Eveque’s favor,” the Grand Oratrice said, her surprised tone sounding not surprised at all. “What is your second request Little Bishop.”

“That the wives will not be allowed to repeat the Gauntlet Trials should they fail the first one.”

This produced much French speaking and even some laughing. “Okay Little Bishop. The lady rolls the Fate Die first.”

Beth picked up her die and rolled it. Dear Lord, another fat NO.

Bishop rolled his and the chuckles erupted at the second NO.

“Meh, that one was easy,” the Grand Oratrice said, clearly humored. “What is your last request, Little Bishop?”

“May I have a moment with The Seer?”

“You may,” the woman said, leaving Beth at the table where she clasped her hands before her and stared at the floor. The ladies spoke hushed French mixed with stifled giggles. Boy they were having fun with this. She smiled to herself at the Little Bishop name. They surely had known him since he was a babe and adored him like everybody else. Little Bishop wanting to change the right-hand rules because he was so scared for his lil wife. Sha peechay as Mah-Mah often said when somebody was adorably pitiful.

Bishop returned to her side. “I have no final request,” Bishop said, her stomach sinking at his defeated tone. Nothing anybody would hear but maybe her.

“And the Belle Eveque?” the woman asked, surprising her.

She thought quickly at the sudden opportunity to maybe fix things. “Uh…might I have a moment to…gather my thoughts?” Saying she wasn’t prepared might look bad on Bishop for not preparing her. And saying he didn’t know she’d be able to make a request wasn’t a good look either given his position as leader.

“You may,” Grand Oratrice approved happily.

Beth closed her eyes and mentally raced through her options. He wanted to secure the safety of the women. That was all. What could she request to get that? Without looking like she was on his side. Something for her that would actually be for him. Something along the lines of her own job as Belle Eveque. The relationships and families, that was her forte. That was it. “My one and only request is…that The Twelve permit their wives a full year of apprenticeship as the right hand from the time of marriage before anything is decided and made official.” She looked down and cleared her throat. “If you please.” It wasn’t much but she’d hopefully bought him a year to figure something else out.

“Meh okay, sha,” the woman said, her tone light yet weighing with the same adorable pity they had for Little Bishop.

Beth rolled her die, fighting not to see Bishop’s gaze all over her. “YES,” she declared at reading the die.

Bishop rolled his and her smile vanished at the NO.

“Meh, roll the Judgement Dice,” the Grand Oratrice said.

Beth rolled hers. “TWO!” she exclaimed. Then quickly added, “Geeze, my luck sucks.”

Bishop let out a sigh then rolled his, getting a round of laughs from the women while Beth stared in shock at the roll. A ONE.

“The Fate Dice and the Judgement Dice have spoken,” the Grand Oratrice kindly announced like she’d known all along. “The Right Hand rules remain the same and the Gauntlet Trials will be conducted immediately after marriages.”

Her hope returned at that announcement. Marriages could take a while. Especially if she saw to creating enough complications.

After long and painful introductions followed by goodbyes and Gauntlet Trial whisperings among The Twelve, Bishop finally took her hand and led her to their boat. It wasn’t until they arrived that she dared to voice her suggestion, not wanting to seem like she was trying to coddle him.

His initial response was a single dry laugh followed by, “My Petite, marriage in the swamp means fucking. And I made sure that was taken care of immediately for the protection of the women. And you and I are as married as we can get.” He climbed in the boat and reached for her hand.

She settled in the seat just before him, putting her back to him. She glanced over her shoulder then turned more fully. “I’m sorry, Bishop. I messed everything up.”

“No, you didn’t. Everything happened the way it needed to.”

She eyed him, using her hand to block the sun from her eyes. “It did?”

“If one has faith in the Fate Dice, yes,” he muttered. “And I agreed to have that. No matter the outcome.”

She faced forward, nodding then wondered over her shoulder. “Why didn’t you do a third request?” She decided to turn and face him, realizing he wasn’t too pissed.

“The message Fate had was obvious.”

She considered that, staring at her hands in her lap then taking in the bayou scenery. “I tried to help without….”

“Making it look like you were rescuing your leader?”

Shame burned her cheeks and she lowered her head with a nod.

“Ma Petite gets a gold halo for angelic effort.”

Hearing the familiar warmth in his tone brought her gaze up. His eyes were on her, and his smile. It brought more heat to her face, and she couldn’t stop her own grin. “They called you Little Bishop,” she remembered. “Did they all change your diapers at one time?”

He let out one of his sexy laughs. “Mah-Mah had me potty trained at six months but I’m sure they saw my little white ass running naked whenever I could. I took strong issue with any manner of clothing.”

She laughed at hearing it. “You were a little streaker?”

“I was. She made me some underwear with an alligator-hide skirt over it. Said it was Viking clothes. I never wanted to take them off, so she made me three more just like it.”

Beth couldn’t smile any bigger at imagining it. She eyed his strong, veiny hand hanging on his knee and reached for it, bringing it to her mouth for soft kisses. “You were such an adorable boy. I memorized Mah-Mah’s family photo album. Imagining what our kids will look like.” She sucked in a breath, remembering. “Where on Earth was Mah-Mah when you called her?”

“Ohhhh, that woman,” he muttered. “She was at the grocery store shopping. Forgot about the whole thing and wanted me try and get it tossed out.”

Beth gasped at hearing that. “Why didn’t you?”

“Because I had already committed to trusting the Fate Dice. Plus, it saved me a little humiliation from hearing a resounding NO. Those Auditors may seem sweet, but they serve their positions and uphold the laws with the conviction and dedication of God’s most elite angels.”

She raised her brows. “Wow. But that’s good, I think?”

He nodded. “It is.”

She thought about Mah-Mah. “How could she have forgotten?” she wondered, or worried.

“She didn’t, Ma Petite. My guess is she was having second thoughts too late.”

Beth wasn’t sure how to feel or think about that other than relief. She hated the idea of them being opposed on anything. She remembered the Gauntlet Trials. “So…when will the Gauntlet Trials start?”

“The Twelve are meeting now about it. Will likely take them a day to plan it and a couple days to set it up. I’m needed for it so I’m bringing you to the main house.”

Beth nodded, back to squirming inside. What did he want out of that. Did he want her to fail? Could she manage to throw it? Should she? The Fate Dice seemed to think she was to take the test as scheduled. She remembered her own role in all of this. The Belle Eveque. She had grand plans that had nothing to do with war and thank God for that. Anyway, war prevention started with raising kids right in a home full of passion and love—especially between a husband and wife. So really, she was having more than a say in war votes, she was helping ensure there would be less wars.

Her spined straightened with weight of her purpose.

“What is Ma Petite thinking so hard about?”

A sexy heat colored his tone, adding naughty thoughts to the ones in her head. She decided to disclose those rather than the others. “Well, I’ve been thinking about these marriage dice.”

“Have you,” he said, his sexy tone lowering. “Fate… Sex Dice? Pleasure Dice? Discipline Dice?”

Each one put fire in her blood. “Sounds like a job for the Belle Eveque. Maybe we can make them with little how-to booklets and give them to all the couples?”

He leaned over and kissed her. “I like the way your brain works, Ma Petite.”

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